Squat vs. Leg Press for Big Legs

Question: I was wondering if, for hypertrophy purposes, there is any real advantage using bar bell squats instead of leg presses. Looking at things from perhaps an oversimplified perspective, the leg press seems to have the same joint movements and muscle lengthening/stretching as the squat – plus it’s a lot safer for the lower back.

I’m guessing it may come down to maximum load that can be moved. But can people squat more than they can leg press? Also, I’d be surprised if it were practical to use loads >1RM (negatives) for a squat, whereas on a leg press machine with a partner or two it is quite easily done.

I’m thinking the squat just ‘feels’ harder because of all the stabilizers that are used and there is more need for proper technique to make it safe. I know a lot of power lifting purists will scream that the squat is the king of exercises, yada yada yada, but for leg/glute hypertrophy, what is the advantage? Some people also seem to think squatting causes more testosterone and or GH release but is there any solid evidence of this? I would doubt it.

Answer: First and foremost, while I’m sure my answer will offend the hardcore/hardheaded lifters, there is no requirement to perform squats (back or front) to build big legs (or even build leg strength). I know that this contradicts everything that has ever been written on the Internet but the idea that someone must squat to get big is mainly a lot of macho nonsense.

Historically, the reason that squats probably became popular was that, early in the days of weight training, that’s all there was to do. Leg presses didn’t exist (at least not in any form that wouldn’t cripple you) and if you wanted to train your legs that pretty much meant squatting.

Which isn’t to say that squatting isn’t an excellent exercise. It has arguably been responsible for more gains in strength and size than almost anything else. But it’s not the right exercise for all people; and it’s certainly not required to get big or strong legs (it’s worth mentioning in this vein that the Australian track cycling team, which absolutely dominated the world scene for a few years there, used the one leg leg press as their primary leg training exercise).

Quite simply, the only people who must squat are powerlifters, for whom it’s a competition lift (except in the push/pull meets where it’s not), and Olympic lifters where it’s a key assistance exercise (and there is even some theorizing that modern Olympic lifting will get rid of the back squat with only the front squat being used to support recovery from the clean).

Nobody else has to squat.

And, again, for people with certain types of mechanics (usually very long femurs), back squatting can be a very non-productive exercise for strength or size. They’ll end up so bent over that their low back will give out long before their legs get a training stimulus or they’ll wreck their knees because the only way to remain upright is to push the knees so far forwards that the shear is massive.

Beyond that, let’s take a quick look at reality: Anyone reading this can go into any gym in the world and see the following

A guy squatting who never adds weight to the bar: His legs will not be growing.

A guy doing leg presses who is adding weight to the machine: His legs will be growing.

The exercise clearly isn’t the determinant of growth here. Because exercise selection per se isn’t the primary determinant of growth; rather as I’ve discussed in recent articles such as Reps Per Set for Optimal Growth, progressive tension overload is the primary stimulus for growth.

Exercise selection is purely secondary outside of a given exercise allowing someone to apply progressive overload safely and effectively. You can build strength or mass with almost any exercise if the loading parameters and progression are there (which isn’t to say that exercises don’t vary in how well or how poorly they lend themselves to progression).

Put differently, if someone has really horrible mechanics for squatting, they won’t be able to add weight effectively and or will get injured. That makes squatting a poor exercise choice for them. If in contrast, someone has good mechanics for squatting, meaning that they can add weight progressively in good form, that will make squatting a good exercise choice for them.

Tangentially, it’s worth noting that usually when people say things like “Exercise XXX is the best for growth” what that usually means is “I’m built to do exercise XXX effectively.” People assume that since an exercise is good for them (since they are built well to do it), it must be the best for everyone.

For some people, or in some specific situations, the leg press might actually be superior to the squat (yes, I know heresy) for training the legs. Some of those situations include what I mentioned above, people who have terrible levers for squatting for whom things like low back will be limiting long before legs are trained. By taking the low back out of the movement, the legs may get a better training effect in that situation.

Related to this, leg presses can often be used as a secondary leg exercise after back squats (assuming the person is built to back squat in the first place); to get a greater leg stimulus after the low/upper back is fatigued from squats. Again, hardhead lifters/coaches tend to shit on this approach but enough athletes (including some very strong powerlifters) do this to make me think that the hardheads are full of it.

It’s worth noting that your comment about the leg press being safer on the low back isn’t automatically true. Done incorrectly, the leg press can be a low back death trap. People with poor flexibility and/or who try to bring the sled too far back will round their low back terribly; under heavy compression load this is an excellent way to herniate a disk.

It’s worth mentioning that doing leg presses one leg at a time (with the other leg on the floor) makes it nearly impossible to round the low back and this may be the safest way of all to do them. It also saves you a lot of time loading the machine since you won’t have to put as many plates on.

As far as comparing loads between the two movements, this isn’t really accurate. The leverages on the leg press will allow almost anyone to move more weight (in absolute terms) than squatting. But what we are concerned with in terms of the growth and strength response is not just the absolute load on the bar, we are interested in the tension in the muscle. The mechanics of the leg press will let folks move more weight (in terms of plates on the machine) but that doesn’t automatically mean more tension on the target muscles.

It’s also worth noting that people who get on the leg press and move a ton of weight through a tiny range of motion aren’t doing themselves any favors either. Not only is it much more stressful on the joints, by working only in the strong range, they are actually decreasing the amount of tension that their muscles are being exposed to.

Assuming the flexibility is there, I want people taking their leg presses to at least parallel (e.g. the angle between upper leg and shin should be a minimum of 90 degrees). For most macho leg pressers, this will mean stripping about half the weight off the machine to get depth.

As to the hormonal response, who cares. Nobody has ever shown that the small hormonal spikes to training mean a thing and recent research is starting to show that it is simply meaningless. Whether squats or GH raises hormones a little bit more simply isn’t relevant as far as I’m concerned.

Summing up, the fact is that the leg press is a compound movement that works a large number of muscles through a decent range of motion. Trainees can apply progressive tension overload on a leg press as safely and effectively as in squatting.

And for some people, usually those with mechanics that make squatting a problem, the leg press may actually be a superior choice because it takes limiting muscle groups (low-back is the common issue) out of the equation. In a related vein, it is often the upper body that fails during squatting (especially higher repetition sets); if the goal is to train the legs, it makes little sense to me to let an ancillary muscle group limit that goal.

Finally, since I can only imagine the comments that this article will generate, I’m in no way anti-squatting. I happen to love squatting, I’m also built well for it (short with short femurs). For people who can squat progressively and effectively, it’s an excellent exercise; and for those with poor mechanics it’s often not worth the time and effort because the results simply won’t be there.

The leg press, properly performed (meaning keeping your ego in check, taking the sled to parallel or slightly below) in a progressive fashion is an excellent way to train the lower body while avoiding some issues that can make squatting problematic for some trainees.

Oh yeah, keeping with my comment way above about the historical development of squatting, I wanted to show you how guys used to ‘leg press’ back in the day (this picture originally appeared on the cover of Hardgainer, just for the record). You either had to have two guys lift the bar to put it on your feet or do it yourself (use your imagination).

Comments

Comments

Ok. Got that out of the way. What you didn’t seem to touch on is the question of which will make you stronger overall. I have awful squatting geometry, long legs, long arms, short torso and yet, squatting more is the thing that brings up most of my other lifts. I’m not built to front squat but I am built to box squat in a wide stance, and Shocker, a combo of front squats and box squats has made me all around strong in ways that a leg press never could.

So isn’t the basic wisdom that in order to get big, you need to get strong have some bearing here? Squatting seems to carry over to almost all sports, at least for me. Leg press has never seemed to help anything except maybe when I was racing bikes, but I was pretty weak like most bike racers and stair bounding was every bit as effective.

This is probably something you’ve been over in the past…..but given what you say there about the important thin being the tension in the muscles rather than the weight, what is your opinion of Superslow style training – really slow repetition speeds to maximise that tension but minimise force….

bro on
March 18th, 2009 3:47 pm

but I thought squats are good for bigger arms ??!11

eszekial on
March 18th, 2009 10:58 pm

I am just baffled at the retardation it had to take in order to leg press like that.

Johan on
March 19th, 2009 3:19 am

Hi Lyle

Just a quick question. The leg press machine I use allows for different back angles. There is the usual 90 degrees, then a 45 and then one that is almost flat, Id guess 10 degrees.

What would be the differences in terms of muscles used, and which angle would you suggest?

Nice article. I really don’t have a problem with people using the leg press, but I’m glad you pointed out it isn’t necessarily safer on your back (if performed incorrectly).

I think a lot of us get irritated or amused with guys who load up the leg press and then do 1/4 reps (with their hands on their knees). But poor execution happens on other lifts, too.

The first time I saw one-legged leg press was on an Ed Coan video. He likes it as an assist exercise to the squat.

Fred on
March 19th, 2009 8:35 am

“In a related vein, it is often the upper body that fails during squatting (especially higher repetition sets); if the goal is to train the legs, it makes little sense to me to let an ancillary muscle group limit that goal.”

Isn’t this then the exact reason why squatting should be preferred? The primary benefit to freeweights is that they train you under a system that is more widely applicable to real scenarios than machines can. Squatting is really a full body exercise that trains your body proportionately to actually be able to perform outside of fixed process.

If your upper body is what’s failing first on squats, then your strength is disproportionate between your upper and lower body and you SHOULD be training it. For complete body performance, this is vastly preferred to training anything in isolation.

How are your legs man? Huge, I imagine… seems like it’s been a while since I have seen them.

I appreciate your truth that leg press will to the trick–that squats are not necessary and in theory, I agree. That said, I think it’s important for a multitude of reasons, which I can share over coffee or in an article, that people that want to develop size and strength learn to squat. That they become comfortable with the uncomfortable.

Squats are a right of passage, just the same as no self-respecting adult should ever leave their home without having read Atlas Shrugged, or at least try to dialogue with anyone, strength athletes should have mastered the squat… BEFORE they decide to replace it with leg press.

After this, I allow them that right. But squatting is as much mental as physical. It develops true strength, from the inside out… it activates the entire body in a way leg press can not. It also is a practice in balance, flexibility and focus.

That said, I am a fan of good leg presses (know there is a difference, please) and am especially fond of them for people, like myself, who are no longer 20-something… when the back starts to become less solid, squats can be an issue and I like the idea of leg press more and more.

Thank you for sharing your wisdom dude… have to shoot me an email so I can send you some Full Strength man!

Nice to hear about some aussie innovation, I’ll have to give the one leg press a try.
Now that I have a bulging disc in my lower back and getting closer to 40 I don’t want to risk injury, but I don’t want to get soft with training either.

This may be an alternative that can still stress the muscles enough to develop. I would be interested in what alternatives you would suggest to deadlifts or hamstrings? I have heard feet placement on the leg press can change the stress from quads to hamstrings?

Great post Lyle! You mention that “…it is often the upper body that fails during squatting (especially higher repetition sets); if the goal is to train the legs, it makes little sense to me to let an ancillary muscle group limit that goal.” I’ve always felt this was a major setback with the squat over hack squats, leg press etc. One pro bodybuilder I trained with many years ago used to always do leg presses before squats to “pre exhaust” the quads and not have the lower back and core fail before his quads. Anyway, love reading your stuff!

Scott Welch

Jared on
March 20th, 2009 6:46 pm

What is your opinion on the Nautilus horizontal leg press. No matter how light i go after a while i can still feel it in my lower back,am i just giving it bad form or is it really just no good for you as some other strength coachs absolutely hate them 🙂

Nicko on
March 21st, 2009 8:35 am

If one has different leg lenght’s is leg press a better choice?

Goliath on
March 22nd, 2009 9:14 am

This may be an outdated page but after finding it I have to correct many issues. First to the question asked, I assume when you mention hypertrophy you are refuring to sarcoplasctic hypertrophy and not sarcomere. The squat is a far superior exercise to the leg press, in fact I’d love to debate the need for leg presses at all. As mention the number of stabalizer muscles required far exceed any machine based exercise. The squat is only dangerous when I’ll informed meat heads load up the bar stoping before they even go parallel, and then call it an exercise if you cannot squat the weight past parrallel you cannot squat the weight! The number of muscle groups activated is directly related to the amount of HGH produced by the body during deep sleep cycles, this is just fact. When you damge more muscle the body produces more HGH to repair it, since the squat requires more muscle it then illicits a greater production of HGH.

It’s amusing reading the comments: a lot of misconceptions, a lot of people hearing something I didn’t actually write and a lot of macho horseshit.

Which is about what I expected.

Goliath: if the goal is big LEGS, why do stabilizers matter? Also, GH is irrelevant to growth (as I actually stated specifically in the article) so who cares. Even injectable GH doesn’t increase muscle mass in humans, the spikes from training are triply irrelevant. And if you’re so damn concerned with stabilizers why don’t you squat standing on a Sitfit or a stability ball? More stabilizer function = better, right? But I’m glad folks like you and Cynthia are out there to ‘correct me’ when I go astray.

Nicko: True leg length differences are fairly rare, it’s usually a pelvic issue (the pelvic is rotated and this shows up as a leg length difference). That said, if someone has a true leg length issue, isolateral (one legged movements) may be preferred to avoid spinal/pelvic issues.

Jared: I’m not sure which machine you mean and without seeing what you’re doing can’t say. I will say that some leg presses I have seen are so badly built that they will make the low back round almost without exception; you might be using one of them. But if you feel it in your low back, don’t do it. Seems fairly simple.

Shawn: Thanks for the macho horseshit, the comments section on this piece wouldn’t have been right without it. Blah, blah, rite of passage, blah, blah, gotta squat, blah, blah, strong as a person. Yeah, ok.

Fred: The title of the article is squats vs. leg presses for BIG LEGS. Why are you asking me about whole body strength? That’s a different context, which means a different set of recommendations. Same comment to Dave. I titled this piece very specifically for a reason and that’s all I was talking about.

Protein Review: The deadlift is used to work so many different muscles (not just focusing on legs which is the primary focus of squats in terms of hypertrophy) that I can’t see anything that would really ‘replace’ it meaningfully.

Chris Highcock: The Superslow guys don’t understand basic physics which is why their arguments about tension are oh so very wrong. For example, I can assure you that an explosive concentric with bands will generate way more tension than pissing around with a pansy weight and a 10 second concentric. My point about tension in this piece was that just looking at weight on the bar (e.g. leg press will have a bunch more plates than back squat) doesn’t tell you what the muscle is experiencing.

Johan: I can’t tell if you’re asking about the leg press as a whole or the seat adjustment so I can’t comment.

Ezekial: That’s all guys had in the old days, they worked with the equipment available.

One more thing, someone above asked about foot position and, yes, this does impact on proportional muscle use.

In general, feet higher (pushing through the heels) is more glute and hamstring and somewhat less quads since there is more focus on hip extension than knee extension. The drawback is that this also makes it more likely to round the low back since the hamstrings are on a greater degree of stretch.

Feet lower (pushing through the toes) tends to be more quad dominance since there is more focus on knee extension and less hip extension. The drawback is that it also tends to be harder on the knees in general.

For general use, I have folks leg press pushing through the middle of the foot (neither heel nor toe) so it hits things fairly evenly with variations depends on need.

Lyle can answer this better than I, but here’s what I’ll tell you from personal experience: I’ve never felt any twisting in my back from one-legged press. I usually do it after other exercises, so I don’t go very heavy.

I have to be much more careful with two-legged leg press. As Lyle mentioned, there’s a tendency for your lower back to round if you try to take the weights too low.

Anatoly on
March 25th, 2009 9:21 am

Thanks, Kevin.

robby on
April 4th, 2009 11:38 am

Itotally agree,Squats are my favorite exercise but that being said,I don’t think they are the only way to get big legs.I have done both squats and leg press for well over 20 years now and I really like the burn I get from leg press much more.In my 20’s I would do as many as 30 sets of 8 of deep squats in a quad workout with 315 on the bar but I always preferred the leg press for my quad size which at that time was 30.5 inches.Now that I’m 45 with a few injuries I’m liking leg press even more.I have buddies at the gym with huge legs that never squat,they do a lot of leg press.

i agree that freebar squats are not required to stimulate muscle growth. i have been involved in sport and exercise scice my whole carrer (i have even lectured in the subject)and i am currently a top natural bodybuilder and gym owner in york england. it is my personal and formose prefessional opinion that as long as the ass muscles to specific joint recieve the propper stimulation to trigger anabolic change then it make no difference if u free bar, smaith squat, leg press or ex.

the fundamental issue to me is always do the safest, most comfortable exercise possible to get growth with the least wieght. in my 16 years of training i have never once completed a full working set of free bar squats and my development is very good……….the key is, know ur bodies mechanics and select the movememts that will develop you in the way you want, dont settle for hype or even tradition…challenge everything that is worth challenging.

paul “BISON” lonsdale

Matty on
June 3rd, 2009 9:43 am

Squatting has actually been good for my back. I used to suffer from lower back pain and heavy squatting and deadlifting has fixed it. The key of course is proper form – not allowing the back to round at any stage of the movement. If your back hurts during squatting, get someone to watch you and make sure your back doesn’t round. You could also try hanging from a chin-up bar between sets for a couple seconds – this stretches out the spine quite nicely and alleviates any tightness.

In my experience the leg press tends to aggravate the lower back, hip joints and knees much more than the squat. It’s very easy to round your back on the leg press, particularly if you lower the weight all the way down.

The real culprit for knee problems, I believe, is the leg curl machine. I ditched leg curls on the recommendation of my physio and haven’t had any knee pain since.

Having said all that, the author makes a valid point that the leg press may be better solely for the purpose of building bigger legs than the squat. But at the end of the day, who wants to have huge bumble bee legs with no real strength in them. The squat is still the king, long may he reign.

Norman on
June 6th, 2009 6:05 am

Great article! Unfortunately I am one of those people who must never attempt squats, lunges or deadlifts due to an old hip injury. As long as I dont carry huge weights across the hip joint i am fine. This is why the leg press looks good for me. But does anyone have any suggestions for a replacement exercise for the deadlift – a mass builder for the upper body?

I’m not kidding you I saw a guy in Leeds London doing a a leg press crazy style like that. Everyone in the gym was waiting for the accident to happen. He was on a smith machine which made it better. Nice article, as a jump trainer I have successfully used the leg press to get incredible results for individuals vertical ( as well as the squat) and I am nearly always attacked in forums for it…. fact is it works very well. I particularly think it is great for building raw power in the legs… less worry about form, torso and core strength. Of course core strength is important to develop but it doesn’t necessarily have to be devloped during a squat. Good stuff….

“As to the hormonal response, who cares. Nobody has ever shown that the small hormonal spikes to training mean a thing and recent research is starting to show that it is simply meaningless.”

First off, I really like your site so far Lyle. Just a question about the above. If I’m understanding correctly, you’re saying that the GH spikes from training are negligible. However, it is said time and time again that squats and other such exercises that recruit the most muscle [deadlifts, I’m lookin’ at you] are the best mass builders precisely because they elicit the highest GH output. Are you saying the research you’ve read refutes this? Also, I’m a huge nerd, so I’d love to check out those studies if you have them offhand or could point me in the general direction.

I’m saying that nobody has EVER shown that this miniscule little hormonal effects have jack squat of an impact on hypertrophy. First and foremost, GH isn’t even anabolic when you inject it, raising it for 10 minutes because of how you train does absolutely nothing.

Same for small testosterone spikes. It usually takes about a doubling of testosterone to impact on much in terms of muscle growth. Raising testosterone for a few minutes by 20% does jack shit.

Lyle

Drew on
July 24th, 2009 9:29 am

After reading the article in the link below, I became convinced that isolating the legs with things like leg press/leg curls is a silly thing to do and it is much more beneficial to incorporate all the associating muscle groups when working the legs (glutes etc.), which is what the squat does.

Like the others, Drew, I’d suggest you read the article I wrote again and pay attention to the words.

Cuz it’s funny but nowhere in my article did I mention leg curl or leg extensions.

Rudolf on
August 13th, 2009 6:48 am

Lyle is correct every time, its really amusing to read this article…

Lyle I have a question that doesnt belong in this article because its not about leg sise ONLY, but im going to ask it anyway..

Im a rugby/football player, thus squats is better for my allround puspose on the field, the ONE thing that holds my performance back is strength and size, can you pleas assist me with an appropriate gym program??

Thanks

Chrisbob on
September 24th, 2009 9:54 am

Excellent article. I’ve squatted for years solely for the purpose of gaining quad mass because as you mention, the leg press was sneered at by bodybuilders . My glutes gained well but the legs only made small gains.
Sick to death of meat-heads and poor advice from tattooed vest-monkeys, I tried out the leg press and exactly as you say, you can really focus on the leg burn rather than, as with the squat, have to give up due to upper body fatigue, back pain and/or nausea. Gains have been great and although I do still squat for practicality and arse-shape, leg press have been king for muscle gain (for me)

After reading all these blogs it is probably safe to say if you incorporate both squats and leg presses into your workouts you will probably enhance your gains tremendously.

Matty on
October 31st, 2009 11:53 am

If the leg press works for you, then by all means use it. However, it’s probably a good idea to also incorporate some free weight compound exercise for the legs, be it squats, deadlifts or lunges. Functional leg strength is dependent not only on the size of the leg muscles, but also on the way they interact with muscles in the back and hips. This is the value of the compound exercises, getting the different muscle groups to work together as a team.

If you can’t go too heavy on the squats, it will still be beneficial to do them with a lighter weight. Front squats or dumbell squats may be easier on the back. Also consider deadlifts – people with poor mechanics for squats usually have excellent mechanics for deadlifts. Afterwards, you can knock yourself out with leg presses. My own preference is to do heavy squats first and then fry my quads with leg extensions. I prefer leg extensions over presses because the movement is very different to the squat and works the quads in a different way.

Gordon on
November 20th, 2009 10:19 pm

Hey,

Great article. I would like to see what your views are regarding which exercise is better for training your body, instead of focusing solely on the legs. From your article, you make pretty clear that for training the legs they’re pretty similar, with the squat (possibly) edging out if you can do it well and the leg press being better if you have issues with the rest of your body. I had thought that a major advantage for the squat was the work your whole body had to do to balance the bar, with its heavy resultant core involvement.

Looking forward to reading your response on this, as it’s a major selling point of the squat.

The ‘best’ exercise always depends on the goals, a point that this article was trying ot make but that all the squat centric folks missed. I was discussing one specific goal: leg hypertrophy. And lots of people tried to turn it into a different topic altogether by bringing up core strength and stuff that is irrelevant to the specific goal I was discussing. Clearly IF the goal is different, then the optimal exercise choice will be different.

As to your question: squat or deadlift, take your pick.

Matty on
December 1st, 2009 9:54 am

I would like to throw another exercise in that may be good for all round leg development – Smith Machine Lunges. I find lunges more effective than anything else for working the glutes and hamstrings. Verily, lunges shall give thee buns of steel. They’re also good for the quads.

I hope I haven’t alienated my macho horseshit talking brethren by advocating the use of the Smith machine. Normally, I would advocate the use of free weights whenever possible. But if you use dumbells, your grip soon won’t be able to handle the heavy weights that your legs can lift. You could just put a barbell on your back, but it’s very hard to maintain balance during the lift. This is a good thing if you want to build strength in your ankles but a bad thing if you’re worried about toppling over with a huge weight on your back.

Enter the Smith machine, it takes the balancing completely out of the equation. You can put on whatever weight your legs can handle without fear of falling over. Furthermore, if you go down and don’t have the strength to get back up, you can make a graceful exit. Form is very important as you can injure your back if you slouch during the lift.

arnold on
December 28th, 2009 12:34 am

NO legg press is okay if your scared of being sore because when you squat you have to stabalize the weight throughout the push to keep it balanced and in this process you have workout 75%of the bodys mucles to do this and this means pain the next day and laying up in the bed and yes under the 75% includs back shoulders abss and legs

I get plenty sore from leg press and so do others. Stabilization is irrelevant. Beyond that, I can’t parse your comment Arnold.

Miguel on
February 23rd, 2010 3:15 pm

Whoever wrote this article is not as qualified as they make themselves out to be. I don’t care what your proportions are you must squat. The leg press is the most overrated machine besides the smith machine. As a tall guy I have no problem squating and neither should you. For training the full body the squat beats the leg press hands down. For people who bitch about squatting, well yea no shit its harder and its harder for a reason because it does more for you than the leg press. People who dont think they can squat need to lower there weight and practice on form.

I’m plenty qualified and can assure you that everything you wrote is not only addressed up above in the other comments but is simply wrong. The only person who MUST squat is a powerlifter. It’s negotiable for everybody else.

So read the article again, pay attention to the words (they are the little black things on the white background) and then go do your macho chest thumping elsewhere.

kc on
March 3rd, 2010 5:12 pm

Leg presses are still quite viable because, like the squat, they’re still very compound and heavy. Comparing the squat to a leg press is not like comparing a squat/dead to a hammy curl or knee extension.

AC on
March 5th, 2010 11:01 pm

Hey Lyle, I looked through these comments and couldn’t find mention of it, so pardon if this is a repeat question. What qualifies as a long femur? I.E. how would someone go about decided whether squats are a good idea for them based on body proportions? I’ve been a fan of the front squat for a few years now but if the press will git’er done better, thats awesome for someone with a history of lower-back problems.

John Sanchez on
March 12th, 2010 7:55 am

Excellent article – that’s a nice pic of powerlifting pioneer Wilbur Miller leg pressing. And what the hell is wrong with training in Army boots?

My 57 year old wife fits the profile you describe for bad squatting mechanics: she’s 5’11 and has a short trunk coupled with legs a mile long. Even front squatting is problematic for her due to the forward lean she needs to keep the bar over the balls of her feet.

The solution? Lunges… the kind where you rack the barbell in front on the clavicles and ft. delts just like with front squats. No forward leaning at all which spares the low back and it hits virtually every mucle group a well excecuted squat does including the glutes.

Cheers,

John Sanchez

Paul Skavland on
April 3rd, 2010 2:42 pm

I’m surprised no one mentioned this, so I’ll comment:

If your training program/philosophy includes “going to complete failure,” it is really difficult to do that safely with a regular back squat.

jboy on
April 5th, 2010 11:42 am

AC: people with long femurs are basically going to be those people with long legs in proportion to their height. I have this problem, and heavy squatting is a recipe for destroying my lower back. My long legs also causes problems with DL’ing, because I can’t drive the weight upward without bending forward in order to get the bar around my protruding knees…very bad for the lower back and the skin on my shins.

Matty on
April 25th, 2010 11:04 am

Come on lads, quit making excuses why you can’t squat. I have long femurs as per jboy’s definition (long legs, small torso) and the squat is my best lift. Indeed the guys who seem to struggle most with the squat in my local gym are the tall guys with really long torsos. And going to complete failure with the back squat is pretty straightforward to do safely if you use a power rack. I do it sometimes with high rep breathing squats.

Being weak in a lift is no reason to avoid doing it, just do it with a weight you can safely handle. I’m fairly weak in the bench and overhead press, but I make sure I do them at least once a week because they are fundamental lifts. Similarly, the squat is a meat and potatoes exercise for the legs. Leg presses and other machine exercises make a fine garnish.

C’mon, Matty, find some basic literacy. Nobody said that long-femured people CAN’T squat, just that they don’t benefit from it as much as the favorably leveraged. Because, see, those words mean different things. And they aren’t really that complicated of concepts to differentiate although, by and large, the macho dipshits who think that squats are required as an exercise seem to be quite the reading impaired.

Matty on
April 25th, 2010 8:56 pm

Macho dipshit, moi? Just because I pity the fool who doesn’t squat.

What I’m saying is that people may be making too much out of this whole leverage thing. I benefit greatly from squats even though the esteemed writers on this forum would tell me I am unfavourably leveraged. Pain in the back while squatting suggests a weak or injured back rather than poor leverages. Building up strength in the legs with leg presses while not addressing the underlying weakness in the back is a recipe for disaster.

Squats are unfairly blamed for a whole range of maladies from bad backs and knees to a tendency to spout macho horseshit. It’s interesting that many physiotherapists use squats (albeit without weights) as a part of their back rehab program. Properly executed squats build strength in the back and knees.

Human beings are built to squat. Toddlers will instinctively squat when picking up heavy objects off the floor. Go to a village in rural Asia and you will see many villagers squatting rather than sitting. I’ll wager these people have backs in excellent health.Try telling them to use a chair because they have long femurs.

Ok, everything that need be said in the comments here has been said so I’m closing comments after I make the last one.

This whole macho bullethead idea that one MUST squat is simply asinine. It’s a tool, a good tool but just a tool. IF I said you had to run to get into shape, you’d think me mad. If I said you had to ride a bike, you’d think me stupid. It’d be like saying that you MUST eat apples. Or some other random food. As if they held the secret of life and death. It’s idiotic.

Yet people seem intent on making exactly that argument. I’d suggest you read The Importance of Context and try to get your head out of your ass.

And comments are closed.

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